Here is a beautiful obituary for Sam Schuman, my father’s brother, who passed away this week at 72 years young, after living with lung cancer for 18 months. Longtime readers of this blog will remember (maybe) that last year my husband and I did Pedal the Cause, a St. Louis-based bike ride to raise money for cancer research. (Several of you even donated to our ride, which was really moving. I was going to do it again this year, but, well, I’m too pregnant.)
I rode that ride in honor of Sam, and I have also written several of my articles in the last year dedicated to Sam, because he was everything a university administrator should be. He was a lifelong champion of the liberal arts, he prized academics over amenities and sports, he believed in educating the whole person, and he was never, ever in it for the money. Those of you who (flatteringly) think that I am the best-known Schuman in higher education are mistaken: That would be Sam, and it always will be Sam.
As you can imagine I am taking it easy on writing for a few days, and I’m uncharacteristically short on words today, but I just wanted to share what an extraordinary person he was and how much he will be missed by our family.
Nice, Rebecca.
Sent from my iPhone
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What a beautiful tribute.
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I am so, so sorry for your loss. I am sure your uncle, while dismayed with present-day academia, was proud to see his legacy of integrity and commitment to the humanities in his niece’s outstanding activism and incredible bravery. My sincerest condolences to you and your family.
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Thank you. He was an amazing person, and he was mostly mildly amused by my antics.
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